Actually, I know you know the answer, but I want to know how you got it. This year we are going to take part in an awesome new math program (new books and everything)! I was taking a look at some of our ideas from the first investigation (which is like a chapter, but doesn’t the word “investigation” sound cool???) and the content focuses on students explaining their answers.
I really like the idea of students explaining their answers because when I was in 5th grade, I ‘m not sure that I could. As a result, I want to see how people think about a typical addition problem. Please let me know how you solve the following:
2,345 + 487
This is what I think:
2,345 + 487 =
2,345 + 400 = 2,745
2,745 + 80 = 2,825
2,825 + 7 = 2,832
I like to break 487 down into easier parts to manage. I look at 487 as 400+80+7. From there it is easier to add those numbers to 2,345. In order to understand this problem in this way, it is important to realize place value. In other words, 487 has 4 hundreds (400), 8 tens (80) and 7 ones (7). What do you think about this explanation? Would you do this problem this way?
Well I saw Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix today. I am surprised that it took me this long to see the movie, as I am typically an opening day Harry Potter kind of guy. When the Goblet of Fire came out, I saw it at the Imax theater in Lansing… amazing.
As for the movie, it was great. The producers are definitely starting to move away from the friendly, happy days of the Sorcerer’s Stone and Chamber of Secrets. A lot of this movie was dark and cold. Nonetheless, the action was great, Harry faced and overcame tons of adversity, and there was quite possibly the coolest wand scene ever (not that there are too many wand scenes around)!
When I watch Harry Potter, I can’t help but wonder about why I like the story so much. After careful review, I have come to the following conclusions:
Harry is real. Many kids and adults can identify with Harry because he goes through ups and downs, just like all of us.
Harry has great character. One of my favorite character traits is integrity (doing what’s right even though now one is looking). Harry continues to impress me with his integrity; he is always fighting for what he believes in and what’s right.
Harry lets his actions speak for themselves. Rarely do you see Harry gossiping about others (even when others seems to turn on him).
Needless to say, I am ever so excited about the seventh book The Deathly Hollows. What do you think about H.P.? How about predictions for the seventh book (my class, remember that predicting is one of major comprehension strategies)? I predict that Harry will prevail over Lord Voldemort in the end. I also think that Harry’s parents will return. I believe this because I noticed in the Order of the Phoenix that Luna Lovegood mysteriously said, “Somethings have a strange way of showing up where you don’t expect them.” I guess I’ll just have to wait and see!
As you may have already noticed (if by you, I mean me… because I am not sure that anyone else checks this thing over the summer), I have a new tab on the front page of the blog. The new tab is entitled “resources” and is a page that will be didicated to video tutorials and other resources for kids and parents. Be sure to check back often as my resident technology guru/consultant Tammy Maginity has big plans for lots of video lessons in the future!
As always, I have a question: Parents, how often would you say you use online or electronic resources as a tool to help your child with school work or pleasure research (is that really a term known to kids… Pleasure Research? If not, it would be cool if it were.)? Do your kids reguarly use Google, Wikipedia, or other electronic resources.
It is my hope that the ”Resources” tab on this page will serve as a living personalized resource to kids not only in our district, but around the world. If you have any resources that you think are useful, please let me know and I will post them!
I have started to notice that my little map below (see little map below) has accumulated more red dots than a full blown case of chicken pox (maybe not, I haven’t had them in a while). Anyhow, we have people from 5 continents visiting this page! That is amazing!! Perhaps some have stumbled on this page by accident, but I think some are coming to check out what our class is doing!
I would really love to hear from the folks who are visiting this site. If you wouldn’t mind, drop us a line and let us know where your from and what you like or would like to see on this blog. Thanks for visiting!
Well, I usually use this space as a resource/teaching tool, but since we are in the middle of summer I think I would like to add another dimension to my E-Classroom. There is an article (click here) that I came across on Will Richardson’s blog that details how different age groups use the Internet.
This chart is very interesting. A couple of observations I have made:
- School age students are using the web to create, publish, and criticize
- School age students are using the web to connect with others
Obviously there is more, but the important thing here is that our classroom and school community embrace this change. I think it is awesome that our class can have a conversation with someone in Africa, Google the place where they live (and look at a satellite view of the house… creepy but cool), THEN blog about our impression of their culture…. THEN have them respond to our comments about their culture. How cool!
My question today is… how do parents see the Internet impacting their child’s education (good or bad)? Kids, what do you think of the Internet; is it boring, interesting, or could you careless?
This is an awesome video with a great message. Basically, the short video describes how kids can feel bullied and left out in school. Here are a few of the lyrics (words) from the song:
You don’t know what it’s like to be hurt, to feel lost, to be left out in the dark. To be on the edge of breaking down and no one’s there to save you. No you don’t know what it’s like… welcome to my life.
I think that the writers of the song (Simple Plan) hit home on the fact that there are a lot of kids and adults in this world who don’t feel included, feel bullied, and have no one to talk to about their problems. The video mentions that 100,000 (that’s right, I said 100,000!!!) kids drop out of school every year because they DON’T FEEL COMFORTABLE IN SCHOOL!
My question to you (and if you’re in my class, you know that I always have a question) is what do you do to make people in your school feel included? What about on the athletic field? Do you work as a team? Is there someone that you think might not feel included while at school? What are YOU going to do about this?
I was really impressed when I looked at your district folders today. It seemed as if everyone used the time in class wisely and produced a lot of good information for your digital story. In an effort to bring you more information about Greenfield Village, I have posted another video from Youtube. This video is shot by a gentleman who loves planes, trains, and automobiles (John Candy and Steve Martin not included… not that you guys would know who they are, but maybe your parents are looking at this too).
This video is cool because the director has used Microsoft Moviemaker (Spencer, this is similar to the software you guys use in broadcasting). Essentially the director is combining movie, sound, pictures, and text in order to tell you his story about Greenfield Village. This is similar to what you guys will be doing with your photostory. Take a look at the video and let me know what you think!
Recently in science we have been talking about our atmosphere. We learned that our atmosphere is made up of Nitrogen, Oxygen, and Trace gases, which include water vapor (water in a gas form).
We then learned that the water vapor can condense to form liquid water (this is what happens on the side of your McDonald’s pop).
Today we talked about the fact that air has pressure. The video below shows what happens when air pressure is not equal on the outside and inside of a can.
Steve Spangler’s Science Website puts it like this: Here’s the real scoop on the science of the imploding can: Before heating, the can was filled with water and air. By boiling the water, it changed states from a liquid to a gas. This gas is called water vapor. The water vapor pushed the air that was originally inside the can out into the atmosphere. When the can was turned upside down and placed in the water, the water vapor condensed and turned back into the water. Water molecules in the liquid state are many, many times closer together than molecules in the gas state. All of the water vapor that filled up the inside of the can turned into only a drop or two of liquid, which took up much less space. This small amount of water cannot exert much pressure on the inside walls of the can, so the pressure of the air pushing from the outside of the can is great enough to crush it. The sudden collapsing of an object toward its center is called an implosion. Hey, air pressure is powerful!
As we discussed yesterday, we are going to make our own digital story based on our Greenfield Village trip. One problem that I am having is that I am not sure you guys (my class) recognize the possibilities this type of story offers when compared to a regular story.
Personally, I think it’s amazing that you will be able to integrate (or put together) your pictures, words, and voice into a story about an awesome field trip. What do you think about this project? Can you think of any other projects that would be better with a digital storybook?
At the end of the month, the fifth grade will travel to Greenfield Village in Dearborn, Michigan. Click here and be whisked away to Greenfield Village’s website. While you’re there take a look at the different districts we will be visiting. We plan to create a digital storybook of our trip when we get back. As you look at the Village’s website, what places do you think we should include in our storybook?
The video above is of an actual steam locomotive at Greenfield Village. The train is leaving a station in the “Working Farms” district of the park. In the background you can see a blue building; this is the Soybean Experimental Laboratory.
Posted by Mr. Fowler 
Posted by Mr. Fowler 
Posted by Mr. Fowler 
